Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Sep 7

David Rubenstein Buys 24-Foot 'Blue' Sculpture for Over $2 Million After Kennedy Center Removal

Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Sep 7

David Rubenstein Buys 24-Foot 'Blue' Sculpture for Over $2 Million After Kennedy Center Removal

Q: What secret prompted the sudden early morning deinstallation of the iconic Blue sculpture that disrupted Washington traffic?

There is no verified “secret” behind the predawn removal. The best-supported explanation is that the deinstallation was kept quiet for logistical and security reasons while the sculpture was being transferred out of Kennedy Center stewardship and, ultimately, sold to David Rubenstein for future installation at the National Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Garden. What is known is that the National Park Service carried out the early-morning operation at the Kennedy Center’s request. A crane occupied Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, prompting temporary lane closures and traffic delays. The Kennedy Center did not publicly explain the decision at the time, saying only that it was grateful for the years Joel Shapiro’s “Blue” had spent on campus. Subsequent reporting filled in the chain of events: after removal, “Blue” was transferred to a foundation dedicated to Shapiro, and Rubenstein later bought it from that foundation for more than $2 million, according to people familiar with the sale. That impending transfer and sale appears to be the previously undisclosed factor behind the abrupt deinstallation. So, rather than a hidden political or artistic rationale confirmed on the record, the “secret” was essentially the pending ownership change and relocation plan that had not yet been announced publicly.

2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 7

David Rubenstein bought Joel Shapiro’s 24-foot sculpture “Blue” for more than $2 million after the Kennedy Center removed it last week, according to two people familiar with the sale.
The work, installed at the Reach since 2019, was taken down without prior notice or explanation, prompting objections from local patrons who had viewed it as a Potomac-side landmark.
Rubenstein, ousted as Kennedy Center board chairman in early 2025 during President Trump’s takeover, bought the piece from the artist’s foundation after it received the sculpture.
The sculpture is expected to be displayed eventually in the National Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Garden, where Rubenstein serves as chairman of the board of trustees, though no timeline was clear.